Betting Industry Shake-up: Innovation Meets Regulation in Nigeria’s Gaming Sector

Meet CEOs/MDs of business behind Nigeria’s $2 billion Sports betting industry.

Gambling has evolved significantly in Nigeria from conventional forms like pool staking and sports betting Baba Ijebu to a thriving sports betting industry. Historically tied to European football leagues, pool staking was a common sight at motor parks and kiosks, where lovers would wager as low as N50-N200 on matches.

Slowly, with increased internet gain access to came virtual sports betting, which parallels international patterns. The sports betting wagering market is valued at $89.91 billion in 2023 and is projected to nearly double to $182.02 billion by 2030.

Despite financial challenges such as inflation, Nigeria’s sports betting sector has flourished, bring in millions, especially among the vibrant group dealing with high unemployment rates.

Reports suggest that roughly 60 million Nigerians aged 18-40 actively participate in sports betting, driving a market that generates an approximated annual revenue of N730 billion. The federal government has not gone undetected by this development, which is thinking about regulatory steps like import tax tasks and VAT boosts to handle the sector.

The National Lottery Act of 2005 established regulative bodies like the National Lottery Regulatory Commission to ensure reasonable operations despite obstacles in enforcement. Problems such as insufficient age confirmation and marketing rule breaches reveal market regulatory gaps.

In spite of these difficulties, sports betting wagering companies continue to prosper through effective business models and aggressive marketing methods, leveraging the developer influencer industry.

These efforts have contributed to Nigeria’s robust $2 billion sports betting sector, with CEOs playing essential roles in broadening audience reach and sports betting driving market development. Here are the CEOs of leading sports betting companies who have significantly added to Nigeria’s $2 billion gambling empire through their extensive audience reach.

Constable Olaniyan – CEO Surebet247

Constable Olaniyan is the CEO of Surebet247, a sports betting book business he co-founded with Badmos Olasupo in 2011. His diverse profession spans different functions in the video gaming and show business, consisting of operating at one of the United Kingdom’s biggest video gaming centres, The Palace Bingo Club, where he functioned as the Lead Engineer in a Bingo and Bowling Club.

Olaniyan holds a BSc in Geography from the University of Ilorin and a Master’s in Geographical Information Systems from the University of Glamorgan, Wales. Surebet247, founded in August 2011, has become a leading e-commerce organization in the wagering and gaming sector, operating through online, mobile, sports betting and retail channels. The company was in Nigeria on November 7, 2006, and sports betting has actually considering that expanded its presence, attaining over 5,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.

Sam Sadi – CEO Livescorebet

Sam Sadi has more than 25 years of experience in wagering brands and sports betting media. In 2019, he became the CEO of LiveScore Group, a fully integrated environment that integrates appropriate sports betting content, engaging features, and a world-class sportsbook.

Given that taking the helm prior to the pandemic, sports betting Sam has actually driven significant development for LiveScore Group. The company’s worker headcount has increased by 29%, and annual revenue has risen from roughly ₤ 10 million to over ₤ 80 million.

Sam’s leadership and tactical vision have propelled LiveScore Group’s success and helped shape the market’s instructions. LiveScoreBet has actually accomplished significant user engagement, with over 100,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.

Anthony Werkman – CEO of Betway Group

Anthony Werkman was designated CEO of Betway in November 2017, having actually previously acted as the business’s Marketing and Operations Director sports betting because 2015. He signed up with Betway in 2013 and has remained in the online video gaming industry since 2000, holding different effective roles, sports betting including General Manager of an information analytics group and Director of a digital marketing firm.

Under Werkman’s management, Betway has continued to grow its market existence and enhance its offerings. The business’s app has actually gathered substantial user engagement, with over 100,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.

Damilare Alabi, Co-Founder, Managing Director NairaBET

Damilare Alabi has actually differentiated herself as a senior executive with a track record of changing start-ups into institutionalized companies. Her proficiency spans the video gaming, property, sports betting and credit financing industries, where he has established himself as a tactical and operational leader.

Damilare has actually been instrumental in NairaBET’s success for over 14 years. Because June 2019, she has actually served as Managing Director and has actually managed the business’s development and operations in Lagos, Nigeria.

Before this, she was the Chief Operating Officer from 2010 to June 2019, critical in the business’s functional techniques and market expansion.

She established DearDammy Women’s Initiative (DDWIN), a non-profit company empowering women-owned organizations. DDWIN offers frHer academic background includes a Bachelor’s degree in Geology/Earth Science from the University of Ibadan, finished in 2005.

Akin Alabi, the founder of NairaBET.com, Nigeria’s pioneering sports betting bookmaking company, developed the business in 2009. While NairaBET was not the very first sports betting platform in Nigeria, it was the very first to launch a completely functional site, setting a standard in the market.

Femi Babalola- General Manager of 1Xbet Nigeria Limited

Femi Babalola is the Managing Director of 1XBET Nigeria Limited, a franchise of the international sports betting business based in Cyprus. 1XBET, founded in 2007 by the late Sergey Karshkov, sports betting has actually developed itself as one of the biggest bookies in Europe and sports betting the world. The business operates in more than 50 countries, including Nigeria, sports betting where it is fully certified.

Under Babalola’s leadership, 1XBET Nigeria has expanded its footprint in the competitive Nigerian sports betting wagering market, sports betting using a vast array of sports betting options and an user-friendly platform. The 1XBET app has more than 500,000 downloads on the Play Store.

Gossy Ukanwoke – CEO of Betking Nigeria

Gossy Ukanwoke is the CEO of BetKing, Managing Director of KingMakers, and Chairman of Vend Capital. In addition to leading these endeavors, Ukanwoke has actually worked together with African socio-economic organizations and governments to create developmental policies aimed at empowering youths. In 2015, Ernst & & Young honoured him as the Winner of the Accelerating Category– World Entrepreneur of the Year.

BetKing, sports betting established and introduced in Nigeria on February 22, sports betting 2018, by Byron Petzer and Adekunle Adeniji, sports betting runs under the trademark name of Lake Ventures Ltd. This pan-African sports betting wagering and entertainment company has rapidly grown its existence in Nigeria, sports betting with outlets in significant cities and over 500,000 downloads on the Google Play Store.

In 2020, BetKing entered into a partnership with the Lagos Employment Trust Fund, developing over 100,000 tasks, the number of which is increasing each year. In the very same year, sports betting MultiChoice broadcaster purchased a 20% stake in BetKing, which was increased to 49% in 2021.

Denise Coates – CEO Bet 365

Denise Coates is a British billionaire businesswoman, the creator, bulk investor, and joint Chief Executive of Bet365, an online gaming company she established in 2000. Bet365.com was released in 2001 as an online wagering website and has because turned into among the world’s biggest online gaming companies.

By 2016, Bet365 generated $2 billion in earnings and helped with $45 billion in yearly bets. The company also holds a bulk stake in Stoke City Football Club. Bet365 has amassed substantial user engagement, sports betting with over 1 million downloads on the Google Play Store.

Ayo Ojuroye – CEO/Cofounder Bet9ja

Ayo Ojuroye is the CEO and co-founder of Bet9ja, a leading sports betting company in Nigeria, sports betting developed together with businessman Kunle Soname, who likewise owns Portuguese club CD Feirense and Nigerian club Remo Stars.

Ojuroye is likewise the Chairman of Mango Asset Management, an independent Nigerian property management business that produces financial investment returns and offers distinct financial investment insights and sports betting options to both specific and institutional clients.

Founded in 2012 under KC Gaming Networks, sports betting Bet9ja has actually rapidly grown in appeal, with over 1 million downloads on the Google Play Store. Under Ojuroye’s leadership, Bet9ja has actually become a substantial gamer in the Nigerian sports betting market.

Fikayo Ogunfuye – Country Director 22bet

Fikayo Ogunfuye is a seasoned specialist in the sports betting wagering market. He has actually been serving as the Country Director for 22BET in Nigeria given that June 2021. In this role, sports betting he has actually contributed to the company’s development through partnerships, service technique, and brand-new organization advancement.

Fikayo’s experience consists of roles such as Chief Operations Officer (West Africa) at 22BET, where he managed item development and consumer experience, and Country Manager at 22BET, focusing on marketing technique and budget management. Before 22BET, he led marketing efforts at LuckyBet.NG and sports betting held different digital marketing functions at Laclic Services and Betty Bingo.

His profession began at Jumia Group, where he operated in SEO, CRM, and content management. Fikayo also functioned as a Human Resource Officer at SIFAX Group.

He holds a Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech.) in Management and Accounting from Ladoke Akintola University of Technology and a Master of Science (MS) in Business Administration, Management, sports betting and Operations from ESTG University in Cotonou, Benin Republic.

22Bet is an online gaming platform that offers sports betting, sports betting casino video games, and live dealer games. It was released in 2017 and is owned and run by Marikit Holdings Ltd, a business signed up in Cyprus and a subsidiary of Orakum N.V.. They are also the owners of Betwinner and sports betting a chain of casinos worldwide.

Sudeep Ramnani– CEO Sportybet Group

Sudeep Ramnani is the Founder and CEO of SportyBet, a company he established in 2013.

SportyBet is a worldwide sports betting wagering and real-money video gaming operator known for providing an omni-channel home entertainment experience in regulated emerging markets. Under Ramnani’s leadership, SportyBet has actually ended up being a significant gamer in the market, with over 1 million downloads on the Google Play Store.

In addition to his function at SportyBet, sports betting Sudeep is an active investor in fintech and mobile payments and a strong advocate for the growing African internet community. His investments show his commitment to fostering innovation and advancement within the region.

On April 30, 2024, Sudeep Ramnani invested in Chowdeck, taking part in a seed round valued at $2.5 million.

The company is set to disrupt the sports wagering market.

Sunbet Sporting International Limited has said it is concentrated on changing how countless Africans engage with sports betting. In a market worth over $1.5 billion annual, with double-digit growth forecast in the coming years, according to reports from the African Sports Betting Association and PwC, sports betting the firm intends to take advantage of cutting-edge innovation and a commitment to accountable gambling to revolutionise the sector.

Backed by the financial power of four popular African billionaires, Sunbet, which will release in the very first quarter of 2025, intends to be the continent’s largest and most innovative sports betting wagering platform.

At a press rundown, the company’s representative, Akin Babatunde, said that the increase in Internet penetration, mobile usage, and the continent’s deep enthusiasm for sports betting, especially football, has actually set the stage for Sunbet’s enthusiastic entry. He added that the firm’s robust financial backing and professional group will allow it to scale and dominate the marketplace quickly.

Islamic cops raid wagering shops in northern Nigeria

Islamic authorities in Nigeria’s northern city of Kano have actually started closing down sports betting wagering stores, which they say are operating unlawfully.

“As you know, sports betting is forbidden in Islam,” Mujahid Aminudeen, deputy chief of the Sharia police force, called the Hisbah, told the BBC.

Problems from neighborhood leaders and parents triggered the crackdown, fretted about the growing number of gambling addicts, he said.

On the first day of raids, 30 stores were closed in one residential area alone, and their owners were sent home with a caution, the Sharia officer stated.

But Mr Aminudeen cautioned that now that the public was aware that the Hisbah was clamping down on gaming, those flouting the rules would be detained.

Kano city is the capital of Kano state, which has a majority Muslim population and sports betting operates the Islamic legal system – Sharia – along with secular law.

Bookmakers and bars tend to be permitted to run in Kano’s Christian neighbourhoods, sports betting though they too can deal with action if the Hisbah believes Muslims are frequenting them.

However, the existing crackdown is concentrated on Muslim locations of Kano, a vast city and the financial hub of northern Nigeria.

sports betting wagering shops can be found all over the city. Many have television screens, and customers view the result of worldwide football matches or horse races on which they have actually staked money.

Mr Aminudeen said such bookmakers had had the ability to run under the radar as they had opened under false pretenses.

“They don’t have licences to run as they were permitted to run computer game centres, which they later on transformed to sports betting stores,” he stated.

The sports betting industry has expanded drastically across West Africa in the last few years. The area is roughly divided between a primarily Muslim north and a primarily Christian south.

Many individuals go to bookmakers to take pleasure in the sociability of other gamblers, though mobile apps are also popular for sports betting on the result of events and teams.

Nigeria’s crippling economic crisis has actually also suggested people are willing to risk a percentage in the hope of winning huge.

But this had caused widespread addiction, and sports betting parents were even complaining that children were leaving of school to bet, Mr Aminudeen said.

“These economic problems we are dealing with in Nigeria is God telling us to alter our methods by stopping sins,” he stated.

The raids on Tuesday focused on Munjibir, considered a resort area in the northeast of the city– visitors flock there at weekends.

“I am recommending those running those sports betting stores to either closed down or we’ll jail them and take them to [a Sharia] court,” Mr Aminudeen said.

It is uncertain what penalty they would deal with – frequently, such violations carry a fine.

Sharia was introduced in Kano in 2000 – as it was in 11 other Muslim-majority northern states – and prostitution, gaming and the intake of alcohol were banned.